Nestled between the valleys of the vast Himalayas the city of Ladakh has the ability to touch the hearts of all the tourists. While visiting tourists enjoy its immense beauty and take good memories with them.
Situated in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, this city is famous for its outdoor environment, picturesque green oases, sparkling monasteries and small villages.
Ladakh is famous all over the world for its mesmerizing beauty, which is why tourists come from far to enjoy. The blue sky filled with high White Mountains will amaze you as soon as you step into this city.
The charm of the canal valleys will make you dream of living here for forever. Ladakh is also known as the snowy desert, all the tourists fall in love with its pristine beauty.
Situated on the banks of the Indus river, this city is making its own place in everyone’s hearts by becoming a wonderful example of infinite beauty from every end of its rocks and mountains.
It is bordered by China in the north and Tibet in the east, due to the mountainous area, there is very little cultivable land here.
History
The history of Ladakh can be drawn better from the ninth century onwards. The establishment of Ladakh coincided with the end of the kingdom of Tibet.
It is believed that the first tribe to live in Ladakh belonged to the Dardis. According to the beliefs of Greek historians and Alexander Graham, many such evidences have been found which prove that the Dardis used to live in Ladakh.
Naima-Gon was a representative of the ancient Tibet family who discovered Ladakh after the end of the Tibetan Empire. Since then Tibet started living with the Dardis.
At that time Buddhism was very prevalent in Ladakh, a man named Lade-DPA-Hokhar-Bastan was appointed to build several monasteries in Ladakh.
This city of Ladakh was divided into two divisions of Upper and Lower Ladakh. King Takbande ruled Upper Ladakh and Lower Ladakh was under the control of King Takpabom.
Thereafter, King Bhagan of Lower Ladakh adopted the name Namgyal after defeating the Raja of Leh and established a new dynasty which is present in the plains of Ladakh till date.
King Senge Namgyal was popularly known as the Lion King. During his reign the construction work was in progress in Ladakh.
Senge ordered the construction of Leh palace and extended his kingdom to Zanskar and Spiti. King Senge was finally defeated by the Mughals who had already occupied Kashmir and Balistan.
Deldan Namgyal and the Mughals
Senge Namgyal’s son Deldan Namgyal entered into an agreement with the Mughals, in which Aurangzeb was agreed to build a mosque in Leh. With the help of Fidai Khan’s army, Senge defeated the fifth Dalai Lama’s invasion force and established his empire.
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, the Mughal rule was approaching its end, at the same time Raja Ranjit Singh sent his most loyal person Zorawar Singh to conquer Ladakh in 1834. At that time Ladakh was under the rule of Tehspal Namgyal.
Zorawar Singh got power from Namgyal and Karli and Dogra dynasty entered the plains of Ladakh. After 1850, British rule and Europe increased interest in Ladakh. Then by 1885 Leh was made the headquarters of the mission of the Moravian Church.
Inclusion of Ladakh in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir:
In the year 1947, when India got independence on the condition of partition, then Maharaja Hari Singh of Kashmir had two options whether he should join Hindustan or Pakistan.
In 1948, Pakistani attackers tried to capture this part by entering Kargil and Zanskar in Ladakh, but Indian soldiers drove the Pakistanis from this part.
Then Jammu and Kashmir announced a conditional merger with India, and being grateful to the Indian Army they decided to make Ladakh an integral part of India as a part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Both Leh and Kargil got the status of Mandal Headquarters in the convention.
In 1949, China stopped oil trade by closing the border between Nubra and Xinjiang. The people of this region were greatly troubled by the Chinese incursion in 1950.
In 1962, China occupied the Aksai China area and immediately started building roads between Xinjiang and Tibet. On the other hand th Pakistan, China also built the Karakoram Highway.
So India decided to built the highway between Srinagar to Leh at the same time. This highway takes only 2 days to reach Leh from Srinagar whereas earlier it used to take around 16 days.
India also continued to have disputes with its neighbours Pakistan and China over this part of the state including Jammu and Kashmir. The Kargil region of Ladakh remained the focus during the wars of 1947, 65, 71 and 1999.
Ladakh was divided into two districts or regions Kargil and Leh in 1979. In 1989, due to the tension between the population of Buddhists and Muslims, riots also took place here and then Ladakh raised the demand for the status of a union territory by separating from Kashmir.
After this, in 1993, the Government of India established the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, giving autonomy to Ladakh.
In February 2019, Ladakh became a separate Revenue and Administrative Division within Jammu and Kashmir. As a division, Ladakh was granted its own Divisional Commissioner and Inspector General of Police.
Leh was initially chosen to be the headquarters of the new division however, following protests, it was announced that Leh and Kargil will jointly serve as the divisional headquarters.
In August 2019, an act was passed by the Parliament of India which declared Ladakh as a union territory, separate from the rest of Jammu and Kashmir.
Best time to visit Ladakh:
Summer is the best time to visit Leh-Ladakh. In the months of June to September, the atmosphere is sunny and pleasant during the day and at night, the temperature drops rapidly.
You can reach here either by air or by road. If you are thinking of coming to Ladakh by road, then the Manali-Leh or Srinagar-Leh route seems to be the most appropriate knowledge.
Ladakh is most famous for breathtaking landscapes, the crystal clear skies, the highest mountain passes, thrilling adventure activities, Buddhist Monasteries and festivals.
Also read:-
- Famous Temples of Himachal Pradesh – Part Two
- Famous Temples of Himachal Pradesh – Part one
- Amazing waterfalls in Himachal Pradesh